A Conversation with Ishmael Reed Part Two

A Conversation with Ishmael Reed
Faking the Hood

By Wajahat Ali

ALI: Most people characterize you as part of the Left; one who is mostly critical of the Right. People couple you, politically, with Amiri Baraka [controversial and influential African American poet and writer], as two figures who came from the '60's movement. How accurate are both these assumptions?

REED: I wasn't part of any sixties movement. I'm skeptical of movements. I'm part of the times that I'm in. Right now, it's 2008. As for Baraka, he and I have disagreements. I mean, he becomes a demagogue when there's an audience. He's a nice guy in private. I mean I like the guy; he's a terrific writer. I've published two of his books. Baraka is one of these fundamentalists who is prone to idol worship. Once he selects an idol, then you can't criticize the idol. For example, he said Steven Cannon and I should be murdered because of what we said about Malcolm X. The death threat was printed in a magazine called African American Review, edited by Joe Weixlmann, which has received more foundation support than all of the Black literary magazines combined. I asked Joe Weixlmann why he would print a death threat like that in light of the fact that there are all of these armed ideological nuts wandering around loose. He said that for him, to "ice" someone means to reprimand them. Recall, Baraka said that we should be "iced. This from an editor of a Black magazine. A self appointed caretaker of Black lit - doesn't know what "iced" meant.

ALI: What did you say about Malcolm?

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